Superheroes reimagined in film noir style (pictures)

A video game inspires an artist to create a classic black and white look for some popular superheroes.

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Sentinel of liberty

These days, it seems like movies about superheroes often emphasize explosive visuals and sound over compelling story. Macedonian artist Marko Manev has stripped all of the fancy colors from superheroes to create a striking set of original images featuring famous super humans in the muted black and white noir style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. The artist spent about a month drawing and composing each image. He used a Wacom drawing tablet for illustration and Photoshop CS6 for finishing.

Noir style seems like a stark contrast to modern cinema style, especially as superhero-based movies offer more color, explosions, and sound than ever before. With this in mind, it's refreshing to see superheroes in a simple, yet sullen way.

"Those are some of my favorite superheroes and I wanted to make silhouette posters in their most archetypical poses," Manev told Crave. "I love using silhouettes in my art because they are more striking, like statues of a pantheon."

In this image, we see the silhouette of Captain America –- with his trademark shield held high in the air -- proudly standing on top of a pile of rubble after an epic confrontation.

Armored avenger

Surrounded by cranes and other installations, a blackened Iron Man blasts off into the night sky. The artist says his inspiration came from the video game Limbo, a puzzler full of black and white overtones that undoubtedly drew inspiration from the essence of noir.

Sentinel of the spaceways

Watchmaker

As Doctor Manhattan from "Watchmen" rises, the background with gears from a watch reminds those familiar with the lore about how an Intrinsic Field Subtractor disintegrated the physicist and set off a chain of events that eventually gave him superpowers.

Dark Knight

One of the most spectacular images by Marko Manev features the shadow of Batman observing Gotham City from a skyscraper. As the cityscape plays out before him, a bat signal beckons and a colony of bats ascend into the night.